Nagpur bench directs AMC to refund Rs 13 cr to VCCI

Akola, July 14 (UNI) The Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court has directed the Akola Municipal Corporation (AMC) to refund about Rs 13 crore to the Vidarbha Chamber of Commerce and Industries (VCCI), collected as increased transition fee.

A division bench, comprising Justice J P Deodhar and Justice B P Dharmadhikari, in their interim judgement declared that the hike in transit fee from Rs 20 to 50 was unwarranted and unjust.

The bench observed that the hiked fee had lost its character as such and was becoming ex-proprietory in nature and undue burden upon the members of the petitioners' association.

Niranjankumar Bhagwandas Agarwal and Kamlesh Vora, president and secratary of the Association respectively, had challanged the rise in transition fee from Rs 20 to Rs 50 by the AMC on the ground that the increased fee was illegal and without jurisdiction and filed the writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India.

G B Lohiya, senior civil lawyer for the petitioners, contended that no supervision fee could be levied on traders and industrialists who are not importing goods within the corporation limits.

The AMC increased the transit fee on March 28, 2003, within two years of its foundation, the petitioners said in the petition.

The division bench further observed that the petitioners are entitled for refund and accordingly directed the AMC to refund the amount within a period of four months from the passing of order. If it failed to refund the amount within the said period, the AMC will have to pay interest of 6 per cent per annum, it added.

Recently, the Amravati Municipal Corporation had decided to increase the transit fee but gave up the proposal following high court's judgement.

UNI